Thread: Trump pushes back against ban on state medical marijuana interference

Trump pushes back against ban on state medical marijuana interference

By John Bowden - 05/05/17 10:18 PM EDT

President Trump issued his first "signing statement" Friday on a $1 trillion spending bill to fund the government through September.

In the statement, Trump said that some provisions of the bill could interfere with his constitutional authority, arguing that he isn't legally bound to limits imposed by Congress such as one banning the Justice Department from interfering with state medical marijuana laws.

"Division B, section 537 provides that the Department of Justice may not use any funds to prevent implementation of medical marijuana laws by various States and territories. I will treat this provision consistently with my constitutional responsibility," his statement reads.

Marijuana advocates earlier this week cheered the spending bill's provision, which protects certain states that have legalized marijuana amid fears that the Trump administration would rein in legalization laws.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has a long history of opposing marijuana, telling a conference of state attorneys general in February that he's "dubious" to the drug's benefits. He has also called the drug “more dangerous … than a lot of people realize."

"Marijuana is against federal law, and that applies in states where they may have repealed their own anti-marijuana laws,” Sessions told conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt in March. “So yes, we will enforce law in an appropriate way nationwide.”

Twenty-nine states, as well as the District of Columbia, have medical marijuana laws on the books, while 21 states have decriminalized the drug.

Presidents typically release statements when signing legislation, which they can use to raise constitutional objections or explain the president's position on an issue.

In his statement Friday, Trump also took issue with language requiring advance notice of military action and restricting the transfer of detainees from Guantanamo Bay.

In both cases, Trump said he would treat the provisions "consistently with my constitutional authority as Commander in Chief" and "and consistent with my constitutional authority and duty as Commander in Chief to protect national security."

http://thehill.com/policy/finance/33...a-interference

Strong Advice: With 30 million illegal aliens roaming through our society, and DACA still not terminated, any resources expended by the federal government in states that have legalized pot, would be a disastrous attack on States Rights.

It doesn't matter what an individual believes the benefits or non-benefits are of medical pot or even the harm or lack thereof concerning recreational pot, we all have our own personal opinions regarding all types of substances, but States and their residents have the reserved right to manage their own decisions concerning pot. I'm not sure the federal government even has any authority over intrastate pot growing or state sanctioned pot production and sales. Where in the US constitution does it say you have any constitutional authority over such matters?

I mean the last time I checked, you needed a Constitutional Amendment to ban alcohol and of course that didn't work out.

Stick with deporting illegal aliens and leave the pot states alone. Doing or saying otherwise will not end well.

Anyone worrying about medical marijuana is very late to the discussion. Medical marijuana is doomed. Commercial legalization is the future of marijuana and once marijuana is nationally available for commercial legalization the quackery of medical marijuana will no longer necessary be for those who want to get stoned without worrying about law enforcement. That is absolutely and unequivocally the single and only reason people get a medical license to purchase marijuana.

Anyone worrying about marijuana at all is very late to the discussion.

To me, the War on Weed is over. We have more important things to focus on, 30 million of them with 2 legs roaming around our country stealing jobs, benefits, welfare, tax credits, depressing wages, protesting, rioting, disturbing the peace, disrupting our domestic tranquility, committing all types of crimes, running drugs, gangs and criminal enterprises, distributing killer narcotics, and yes killing and murdering Americans.

I don't want to see one dime of federal money spent on trying to investigate, arrest or prosecute any American citizen for domestic marijuana.